Tuesday, July 25, 2017

New & Novel: Debut Fiction

Shelves full of books in a cosy library corner with two empty chairs
and a lamp at night University of Toronto Canada Fiction section in
Hart house library. Photo. Britannica ImageQuest, Encyclopædia Britannica, 25 May 2016. quest.eb.com/search/167_3988032/1/167_3988032/cite. Accessed 7 Jul 2017.

For a reader, there’s something magical about picking up a first novel —
that promise of discovery, the possibility of finding a new writer
whose work you can love for years to come, the likelihood of
semi-autobiography for you to mull over. The debut is even more
important for the writer — after all, you only get one first impression.
Luckily, there are a lot of fantastic first impressions to be had. ~Emily Temple, "50 of the Greatest Debut Novels Since 1950"

The Windfall by Diksha Basu
"A heartfelt comedy of manners, Diksha Basu's debut novel unfolds the
story of a family discovering what it means to make it in modern India."

Midnight at the Bright Ideas Bookstore by Matthew Sullivan
"When a bookshop patron commits suicide, his favorite store clerk must
unravel the puzzle he left behind in this fiendishly clever debut novel
from an award-winning short story writer."

Chemistry by Weike Wang
"A novel about a young Chinese woman whose graduate studies in chemistrygo off track and lead her to discover the truths about her goals and desires."

Hum If You Don't Know the Words by Bianca Marais
"...interwoven narratives create a rich and complex tapestry of the emotions
and tensions at the heart of Apartheid-era South Africa. Hum if You
Don't Know the Words is a beautifully rendered look at loss, racism, and
the creation of family."

Sour Heart: Stories by Jenny Zhang
"A debut collection of stories that plunge readers into the tender and
chaotic hearts of adolescent girls growing up in New York City, from
celebrated poet and National Magazine Award nominee Jenny Zhang."

Lola by Melissa Scrivner Love"An astonishing debut crime thriller about an unforgettable woman who
combines the genius and ferocity of Lisbeth Salander with the ruthless
ambition of Walter White."

What We Lose by Zinzi Clemmons
"An elegiac distillation, at once intellectual and visceral, of a young
woman's understanding of absence and identity that spans continents and
decades, What We Lose heralds the arrival of a virtuosic new voice in fiction."

Talon of Godby Wesley Snipes"The acclaimed actor makes his fiction debut with this enthralling urban
fantasy in which a holy warrior must convince a doctor with no faith to
help stop a powerful demon and his minions from succeeding in creating
hell on earth - a thrilling adventure of science and faith, good and evil,
damnation and salvation."

Rabbit Cakeby Annie Hartnett"How a whip-smart young girl handles the loss of her mother and the
reorientation of her family; charming and beautifully written."

Eggshells by Catriona Lally"Vivian doesn't feel like she fits in - and never has. As a child, she
was so whimsical that her parents told her she was 'left by fairies.'
Now, living alone in Dublin, the neighbors treat her like she's crazy,
her older sister condescends to her, social workers seem to have
registered her as troubled, and she hasn't a friend in the world. So,
she decides it's time to change her life."

Sycamore by Bryn Chancellor"Sycamoreis a coming-of-age story, a mystery, and a moving exploration of the
elemental forces that drive human nature--desire, loneliness, grief,
love, forgiveness, and hope--as witnessed through the inhabitants of one
small Arizona town."

No One Is Coming to Save Usby Stephanie Powell Watts"No One Is Coming to Save Us is a revelatory debut from an insightful voice; with echoes of The Great Gatsby, it is an arresting and powerful novel about an extended African American
family and their colliding visions of the American Dream. In evocative
prose, Stephanie Powell Watts has crafted a full and stunning portrait
that combines a universally resonant story with an intimate glimpse into
the hearts of onefamily."

Taduno's Song by Odafe Atogun"A stunning debut from a fresh Nigerian literary voice: a mesmerizing,
deceptively simple, Kafkaesque narrative, resonant of the myth of
Orpheus and Eurydice and lightly informed by the life of Nigerian
musical superstar Fela Kuti--a powerful story of love, sacrifice, and
courage. "

My Sister's Bones by Nuala Ellwood"In the vein of Fiona Barton's The Widow and Renée Knight's Disclaimer, a
psychological thriller about a war reporter who returns to her
childhood home after her mother's death but becomes convinced that all
is not well in the house next door but is what she's seeing real or a
symptom of the trauma she suffered in Syria?"

The Wages of Sinby Kaite Welsh"A page-turning tale of murder, subversion and vice in which a female
medical student in Victorian Edinburgh is drawn into a murder
investigation when she recognizes one of the corpses in her anatomy
lecture." Sonoraby Hannah Lillith Assadi"This debut novel by Assadi, a recent MFA grad, is a hypnotic
coming-of-age story set in the Southwestern Sonoran Desert and New York
City. Like Assadi herself, Ahlam is the daughter of a Palestinian
refugee father and an Israeli mother, and her intimate narration carries
the reader effortlessly between the past and the present, through a
kaleidoscope of memories, as she sits at her father's side in the
hospital."

Blue Light Yokohamaby Nicolás Obregón"Nicolás Obregón balances the key components of modern detective fiction
seamlessly: a damaged hero, the requisite layer of urban grittiness, a
possible love interest, a taunting serial killer and a series of
frustrating, misleading clues."

Almost Missed Youby Jessica Strawser"Jessica Strawser's Almost Missed You is a powerful story of a mother's love, a husband's betrayal, connections that maybe should have been missed, secrets that perhaps shouldn't have been kept, and spaces between what's meant to be and what might have been."

The Girl from Rawblood byCatriona Ward"Ward's layered and skillfully crafted novel weaves elements of classic
gothic and horror into a remarkable story populated by unforgettable
characters, palpable atmosphere, and rich lyricism. Imagine the darkest
and goriest undertones of Edgar Allan Poe, the Brontës, Charles Dickens,
and Shirley Jackson, and you'll have an idea of what Ward offers here."